Last Sunday I shortened the sermon (always something that endears me to the congregation) by leavning out the following story. It's a good one though, so I share it hear.
Leo Tolstoy, the Russian novelist, wrote a short story entitled “How Much Land Does a Man Need?” It tells of a man who was never satisfied with what he had. He decided that owning land would be the only way he would be really happy…yet he was not satisfied as he acquired more and more. One day he heard about an opportunity which would give him the opportunity to obtain as much land as he can encircle by walking during the course of one day for only 1000 rubles. The only condition is that he had to return to where he started by sundown.
The man starts out early in the morning, and as he gets further and further out, his eyes catch more and more good land. So he keeps on going. It is only when the day is more than half over, that he realizes he'd better make a turn and head back to the beginning - because if he doesn't fully encircle the land, then he gets nothing.
The afternoon wears on and by the end the man is running. Fear gripped him. In his greed, he feared he might lose it all. The finish line is in sight, and the sun is setting. He tries to run faster, but his body is exhausted. Finally, with his last ounce of strength, one moment before sunset, he lunges to the finish line. At which point he collapses and dies.
The story ends with the question of the title, “How much land does a man need?” In this case, only a plot six feet long and three feet wide and four feet deep…just enough to bury him.
When I saw the title of your post, I recognized this story. It is amazing to me to see how often we stress and worry over whether we have "enough land." After the past few months in my life, with the loss of my dad, my friend and fellow BFG teacher and the impending loss of my mom, I realize that all of these three were invested, not in gaining mor land, but in planting the seeds of the Gospel in everyone else's land! I pray that my life and the lives of those I know and love would be focused on that same eternal economy as these who have gone on before!
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